PS3 launch: All about Blu-ray

Inside every PS3 throbs the heart of hi-def movies

Tuesday 20 March 2007 Not only is PS3 a great games console, it’s also the world’s cheapest Blu-ray disc player. But what exactly is Blu-ray? Well, it’s the new format set to replace DVDs. While DVDs offer 9GB of storage space, Blu-rays go up to 25GB on a single layer disc and 50GB on a dual layer disc. While the benefits for games are obvious, this extra space also allows movie makers to cram on incredible high-definition versions of their films. Until you’ve seen it in action you can’t really believe the benefits.

It’s like this: DVD gives digital images that are 720 by 480 pixels – much sharper than old analogue videotape, but still delivered via analogue RGB or component or, worse, composite connections. Blu-ray, on the other hand, runs at 1920 by 1080 resolution and delivers it via digital HDMI. In fact, every Blu-ray movie runs at 1080p – a resolution so detailed that the vast majority of hi-def TVs on sale actually can’t show every pixel yet.